Is Social Media Presence that important?

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In today’s society, there’s a strong influence for the need to establish social media presence. On times when I busy, I seldom use social media and I felt like I am missing out. Many of the conversation topics that are discussed by my friends tend to be from what they have seen on social media platforms.

I still remember the time when many of my classmates persuaded me to start an Instagram account as I was the only one in my class without one. I felt so pressurised and left out if I did not catch up with the rest. At the same time, I was also concerned how addictive these social media platforms could be.

Is Social Media Presence that important?

Are there any instances when you feel the same too? How did you react to it?

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Hi @lovetoeat !

I’m so sorry for the late response, we’re trying to sieve through all the posts on the forum and trying our best to respond to as many as we can. Thank you for being so patient!

I just want to say thank you for sharing your thoughts on this platform and being so open about your feelings. I hear you, I can imagine how pressured you must have felt when your classmates had their social media accounts when you didn’t have one initially.

To be frank, I used to love being on social media when I first started out using. I had very poor control over my usage as a young adult. I would be on social media every waking minute - and you’re right, it truly can become a source of addiction because of all the hidden dopamine “hits” when we use social media.

Eventually it took my time away from my family, I was more tired and less productive at work and I felt I was wasting too much time on social media. I took a 2 year hiatus - a break away from social media! That was back in 2017 and 2018. I deleted my instagram, facebook, and every other social media platform that I was addicted to scrolling and using daily.

Initially, I’ll admit, it was a horrible experience. I would be itching to use and re-install and re-create an account just to get by, but I told myself - since I’m itching because of boredom, I’ll find something to replace that boredom. So what did I do? I decided to pick up a book everytime I felt bored with the absence of social media.

And guess what?

I completed 15 books in 2017 and 21 books in 2018! Okay, I know that doesn’t sound like a lot of books as compared to others. But to me, that was insane! I hardly read books and for me to finish 1 book, might have taken forever. But I managed to finish reading 15 books and 21 books consecutively each year. That blew my mind away because I realized how much time I’ve actually been wasting on social media. My family relationships and my friendships also improved as I was not focusing on taking photos and posting on social media, I was invested in focusing on the face to face time I had with them. Overall, my life felt so much better without social media.

Hence… My (longwinded) response to your question is - No, I don’t think social media presence is important. I feel that our here-and-now presence is more important than anything else.

I hope my little story encourages you a little; that you don’t have to be afraid of missing out (even if EVERYONE is using social media or doing something that you’re not doing) - stand strong for what you believe in and keep doing what you do that makes you happy and rested :slight_smile:

Let me know your thoughts and share with me how you’re coping right now?
I’ll be happy to hear from you!

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